Death Valley and the Valley of Fire

Death Valley and the Valley of Fire October 20 - October 26, 2010
http://www.phototc.com/

Dedicated in 1935, Valley of Fire is Nevada's oldest State Park. It is located only fifty miles northeast of Las Vegas. We’ll spend our first full day here, enjoying the unique rock and sandstone formations of this region, before heading on to Death Valley National Park. Established in 1933, Death Valley is the largest National Park in the lower forty eight states with 3.3 million acres. It is a land of extremes, with elevations ranging from a high of over 11,000 feet at Telescope Peak to a low of 282 feet below sea level at Badwater Basin.

Our days will be filled with sunrise photography over the sand dunes and afternoons in the canyons.Travel with Ron Rosenstock to Death Valley and the Valley of Fire. Ron has been leading photographic tours since 1967. Although Ron has concentrated on international travel since that time he is amazed by the potential of photographing in the vast regions of Nevada and California. A former student of Paul Caponigro and Minor White, Ron retired in 2002 from teaching at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts. His work has been featured in over one hundred exhibitions since 1967, both in the U.S. and abroad, and his photographs are to be found in the permanent collections of the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University, the Worcester Art Museum in Worcester, Mass., The Polaroid Collection in Cambridge, Mass., and the International Center of Photography in New York City. Ron specializes in the subtleties of nature photography, capturing the grandeur and uniqueness of the land. His belief is that “Everyone has a certain style. I don’t tell my students what to photograph; I just show them how to accomplish what they decide to do.” www.ronrosenstock.com

Itinerary

October 20: Home – Las Vegas, NV

Our tour begins with an introductory meeting at our hotel in North Las Vegas, which allows easy access to our first location, The Valley of Fire. Ron will review our plans for the week and give an introductory talk on the photographic opportunities we will encounter. Following the meeting the group can enjoy dinner together in order to get acquainted.Note: As there are no food concessions within the Park’s boundaries, it is highly recommended that everyone bring along bottled water, a packed lunch and/or enough snacks to get through the day. At the Valley of Fire Visitor’s Center water is available for refilling containers, if needed. For those not accustomed to desert conditions, it is important to bring more water than you ordinarily would drink, and to pace yourself while out in the hot sun. You’ll want to have comfortable shoes with good support, as there will be extended walks or hikes over rough terrain. Overnight Holiday Inn Express

October 21: Valley of Fire State Park
The group will depart early this morning in the tour van for the hour drive to. The day will be an extended one, filled with location shoots throughout this amazing Park. The rough floor and jagged walls of the park contain brilliant formations of eroded sandstone and sand dunes that are more than 150 million years old. These features, which are the centerpiece of the park's attractions, often appear to be on fire when reflecting the sun's rays. Some of the highlights include Mouse’s Tank, White Domes, and the Beehives, to name a few. Once an ancient hunting ground to the Anasazi Indians, the Valley of Fire is an unforgettable stop yielding an abundance of well-preserved Indian petroglyphs telling the story of man’s struggles in this harsh landscape. Overnight Holiday Inn Express (Breakfast Included)

October 22 - October 24: Death Valley
Our next three days will be spent in Death Valley National Park. We’ll have sunrise shoots on the sand dunes or in the canyons, where eroded hillsides reveal rainbow colors. Experiment with line, form, and color to create your own compositions with impact. As long as the light is good, we attempt to continue photographing, taking a mid-day break along the way. The photographic locations in Death Valley are endless, and although we can not reach them all, Ron will use his knowledge of the area to provide an outstanding program. We are likely to photograph at Golden Canyon, Zabriskie Point, Mustard Canyon, Mesquite Flats Sand Dunes, Badwater Basin, Artist’s Palette, and even the Devil’s Golf Course. We will spend the next three evenings in our selected hotel. After a full day of photography, we’ll head back to our hotel where we will have dinner at approximately 7 PM every evening. We will be up early each morning for our sunrise shoots. (B at HIE)Overnight three nights Stovepipe Wells

October 25: Death Valley - Las Vegas
This morning will be our final sunrise shoot in the sand dunes, after which we can have breakfast and depart on our drive back to Las Vegas. There are several interesting places to photograph along our route; we may stop at the black lava fields of Ubehebe Crater, Scotty’s Castle, or the Bonnie Clare Flat. If there has been recent rain, the flat floods with water provide magnificent reflections. Given time, we may visit the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, not far from downtown Las Vegas. Participants may want to enjoy a final dinner together or spend your last hours on night photography along ”the strip” before packing for home. Overnight Holiday Inn Express

October 26: Las Vegas, NV - Home
We head back to Las Vegas Airport for flights returning home. (Breakfast included)

Accommodations
Single room accommodations arranged at the Holiday Inn Express in North Las Vegas and Stovepipe Wells. A credit may be applied if you wish to share a room, please contact Strabo Tours for details.

Please contact us for more details.
General Tour Info (includes, excludes and other details)